Aussie deep science startup Reask is calculating climate catastrophe on a global scale

Reask co-founder Nick Hassam is speaking at InsurTech Connect Asia in Singapore this week as part of an AusTrade delegation to explain how the company uses data, technology and high-performance computing for climate catastrophe risk modelling. His return to Asia is poignant, since the last time he visited was five years ago for the 15th […]

Hong Kong Insurance Authority welcomes the second issuance of insurance-linked securities

The Insurance Authority (IA) today (3 June 2022) welcomed the second issuance of insurance-linked securities (ILS) in Hong Kong. This takes the form of a catastrophe bond amounting to US$150 million (equivalent to around HK$1.18 billion) sponsored by Peak Reinsurance Company Limited via Black Kite Re Limited, another authorized special purpose insurer, structured to cover […]

Cat bond issuance surpasses $5.1bn, $2.2bn more in pipeline

Issuance of new catastrophe bonds and related insurance-linked securities (ILS) has already surpassed $5.1 billion in 2022 and there are already another nearly $2.2 billion in the pipeline that could complete before the middle of the year. However, despite how buoyant catastrophe bond market activity appears to be, we’re still a long way off the […]

Speed key to capitalise on cat bond spreads multi-year high: Twelve

For investors considering entering the catastrophe bond market, or increasing their allocations to it, during this period of multi-year high cat bond spreads, “speed is of the essence” according to investment manager Twelve Capital, as this opportunity won’t last for long. In a new paper, Twelve Capital explains its view as to what has driven […]

No additional Philippines cat bond pay out for typhoon Rai’s rains

Having already been triggered and paid out US $52.5 million, we’ve now learned the Philippines governments World Bank issued IBRD CAR 123-124 catastrophe bond will not face any additional loss of principal because of the rainfall from super typhoon Rai (locally known as Odette). We reported back in January that the Philippines government would make a […]

PGGM / PFZW grows Vermeer Re investment again in Q1

Netherlands-based pension investor PGGM continues to steadily expand the capabilities of its joint-venture and rated underwriting vehicle Vermeer Reinsurance Ltd., subscribing for more shares in the company during the first-quarter of 2022. Vermeer Reinsurance Ltd. is managed by RenaissanceRe and capitalised by PGGM, on behalf of its client the Dutch pension PFZW. The pension investor […]

Cat bond market supply-demand mismatch persists as pipeline builds

The mismatch between supply and demand in the catastrophe bond market persists and could now become accentuated, as the market pipeline of new cat bond deals continues to expand. Right now, we’re tracking an impressive fourteen new catastrophe bond series that are being marketed to investors and are yet to complete, twelve of which have […]

NW Pacific typhoon season forecast 20% below-norm on La Niña

The Northwest Pacific typhoon season, which is one of the peak zone perils for reinsurance, catastrophe bond and other insurance-linked securities (ILS), is forecast to see activity levels roughly 20% below-normal, as the effects of La Niña are increasingly expected to last through summer and into Autumn. Tropical Storm Risks (TSR), an insurance and reinsurance […]

TWIA targets $185m+ Alamo Re 2022-1 for cat bond renewal

The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) is back in the catastrophe bond market as it puts together its reinsurance tower, seeking a $185 million or greater Alamo Re Ltd. (Series 2022-1) cat bond that will act as a renewal of a maturing issuance from 2019. As we previously reported, for 2022 the Board of the Texas […]